Table 1

Nutraceutical value of some edible mushroom

Mushrooms are filamentous fungi with fruiting bodies showing a huge number of pharmacological aspects in human health. They are considered one of the delicious foods and are commonly produced worldwide. They have been an essential part of the human diet and are used as both food and medicine for centuries. As shown in Table 1, they are a rich source of nutrients and bioactive compounds such as carbohydrates, fibers, proteins, vitamins, minerals and have enormous medicinal attributes such as antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, anticancerous, and hypocholesterolemic (Fig. 1) which are valuable for human health.

We are the soil.

The mushrooms are rich in protein and carbohydrate content, whereas low in lipid content. They contain essential amino acids, which help in meeting the needs of these amino acids in the human body. They are also rich in many essential unsaturated fatty acids, such as linoleic and oleic acids, which are necessary for the proper functioning of the body. Apart from this, they contain many essential minerals, which are responsible for the proper metabolism of many pathways. Mushrooms, unlike plants, lack chlorophyll, therefore, they grow on decayed organic matters, rich in lignin, cellulose, and other important carbohydrates.

economy

It is economical, rich in pharmacological properties, easy to cultivate, requires low resources and area, and can be grown all over the world. Nutritional, medicinal, bioremediation and biodegradation aspects of mushrooms are increasing day by day and have gained acceleration in recent years (Singh and Singh 2014; Agarwal et al. 2016; Vaseem et al. 2017).